Dollar Advances in Skittish Trading

NEW YORK — The dollar, which fell sharply late Wednesday, staged a gradual recovery in skittish trading Thursday as fears of another round of central bank intervention failed to materialize.

The dollar's advance was not strong enough, however, to avoid its first decline in Europe in six days.

Gold prices rose in Hong Kong and Europe but fell later in quiet trading in the United States. Republic National Bank in New York said gold bullion was bid at $289 an ounce as of 4 p.m. EST, down 60 cents from the earlier close of the New York Commodity Exchange and off $2.50 from the late bid Wednesday.

The dollar, which had been closing in on record highs, suffered a selloff late Wednesday in the United States in response to congressional testimony by Paul A. Volcker, the chairman of the Federal Reserve Board.